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Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister on Sunday called the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at a consulate in Istanbul “a rogue operation” and denied that the kingdom’s crown prince or intelligence service had any prior knowledge of the operation, NBC News reported.

“This was an operation that was a rogue operation,” Adel al-Jubeir told Fox News on Sunday. “This was an operation where individuals ended up exceeding the authorities and responsibilities they had."

Jubeir said neither the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman nor “the senior leadership of our intelligence service” was aware of what had happened to Khashoggi.

“There obviously was a tremendous mistake made, and what compounded the mistake was the attempt to try to cover up,” he said, adding, “That is unacceptable in any government.”

Senators Vow to Act If Khashoggi Killed by Saudis

Some members of Congress say the U.S. must act against Saudi Arabia if the country's leaders are responsible for the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but they differ on exactly what that action would entail.